The Saint (Roger Moore) on Blu-ray/HD?

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by JAuz, Dec 14, 2017.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. JAuz

    JAuz Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    US
    I've been going through the Blu-ray discs of The Persuaders! and watching that series for the first time. One of the bonus features on the set is an HD transfer of one episode of The Saint, "The Ex-King of Diamonds". It got me wondering why more of that show isn't on Blu-ray. I see there's another episode in HD ("The Queen's Ransom") on a Blu-ray called Retro-Action Volume 2, but that's it.

    It's a well-known show that seems like it would do well if released on Blu-ray or made available to stream in HD. Is there any particular reason that it hasn't been, when many other British shows from that era are available? My assumption here is that the color episodes were shot on film.
     
    longdist01 likes this.
  2. John B

    John B Once Blue Gort,<br>now just blue.

    Location:
    Toronto, Canada
    I believe all episodes of the Saint, black & white and colour were shot on film, which is encouraging for a quality bluray release.
     
    longdist01 likes this.
  3. Osato

    Osato Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    I'm sure it's in the works - Network (the company that holds the rights and released the home media for all of the ITC classics) is finally getting around to releasing older shows in HD on Blu-ray. Man in a Suitcase is slated for release next, and I imagine the Saint (and it's sequel series) will be next in line.
     
  4. John B

    John B Once Blue Gort,<br>now just blue.

    Location:
    Toronto, Canada
    Wow. I googled to see if I could confirm that all episodes were shot on film and I discovered the Shout website. ShoutFactoryTV : Watch full episodes of The Saint

    You can watch 12 episodes from the first season there in decent quality. It looks like film and given the British penchant for wiping the videotape masters for re-use in the '60s, I'm pretty sure the series was filmed.
     
    Simon A likes this.
  5. jkauff

    jkauff Senior Member

    Location:
    Akron, OH
    The quality of the DVDs is actually quite good, especially if you're playing them on a computer using high-quality upscaling software. I'd rather watch that than a low-bitrate Blu-ray like Season 5 of The Avengers, which is just awful.

    And yes, they're certainly filmed. In fact, I think that was a Leslie Charteris stipulation in the original contract.
     
    longdist01, John B and audiomixer like this.
  6. The Wanderer

    The Wanderer Seeker of Truth

    Location:
    NYC
    Roger Moore played the cool sophisticate so very well
     
  7. JAuz

    JAuz Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    US
    If it's on the way, then that's great. I was going by when The Persuaders! blu-ray was released though, which was 2011, so I was hoping that it hadn't been dropped from their release plans since then. The episode I saw ("The Ex-King of Diamonds") does indeed look fantastic, so I'd love to see more in HD.
     
  8. John B

    John B Once Blue Gort,<br>now just blue.

    Location:
    Toronto, Canada
    Thanks for confirming. I didn't know that about the author. The Avengers was videotaped which means some episodes don't survive and many are taken from ancient 16mm dubs made for foreign markets. We're fortunate that we can get quality releases of the Saint.
     
    Simon A and longdist01 like this.
  9. joannenugent

    joannenugent Forum Resident

    Location:
    East Coast USA
    Still waiting, waiting and hoping, for an HD release of this by Network.
     
    longdist01 likes this.
  10. I think it would have happened by now if we were ever going to get the show on Blu-ray. As the physical market shrinks and the audience for older shows begins to die off, it's unlikely we'll see it as anything but a possible streaming release.
     
  11. Hardy Melville

    Hardy Melville Forum Resident

    Location:
    New York
    I wasn't a steady viewer, but I do recall The Saint as great tv. I know it is sacrilege to some, but Moore was better cast in it than in the Bond films (those were better with SC).
     
  12. Osato

    Osato Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Network just recently has been releasing Man in a Suitcase on Blu-ray so I wouldn't see why they wouldn't do the same for the Saint.
     
    joannenugent and longdist01 like this.
  13. captainsolo

    captainsolo Forum Resident

    Location:
    Murfreesboro, TN
    I've been wanting to get the new Shout/timeless DVD set which seems to be a NTSC repackaging of the superior Network UK PAL DVDs with extras but it is expensive and I don't know for sure if it's the Network or older A&E masters. Plus I keep hoping for a BD announcement since the series is film based.
    I'm dying to import the Persuaders and Avengers sets but it gets pretty expensive to do so.
     
    longdist01 and joannenugent like this.
  14. joannenugent

    joannenugent Forum Resident

    Location:
    East Coast USA
    That is exactly what I worry about. At the same time though, Network seems to still be plodding along with their, rather slow paced, bluray releases, so I guess there still may be hope. I am rather surprised it hasn’t happened yet actually.....which may just be a sign that it has missed the boat already......

    Ya, these UK only bluray releases can be rather pricey. And that doesn’t even take into account the shipping! As far as I can tell, the Shout DVD set is a repackaging of the older A&E masters. Meanwhile, the Network DVD set is PAL, and so I assume you would have the speedup audio problem.

    A bluray, would really solve all of that!
     
  15. joannenugent

    joannenugent Forum Resident

    Location:
    East Coast USA
    I sometimes wonder if it isn’t simply a size issue. All of Networks bluray releases have had much fewer episodes than the Saint. I mean The Prisoner, The Persuaders, The Man In A Suitcase are all only one season. The Saint is 6 seasons long. Perhaps the number of episodes involved is just too much of a financial risk or something for Network.
     
  16. Osato

    Osato Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Eh, perhaps, but it's also the best known out of that lot of shows. I can't imagine many people are buying the Man in a Suitcase volumes (and they've really milked it... 6 volumes for a 30 episode show), but that hasn't stopped them.
     
  17. joannenugent

    joannenugent Forum Resident

    Location:
    East Coast USA
    Haha at 5 episodes a volume, the Saint would require 24 volumes to complete!

    Oh well, if they can find a way to get it out, I will support it.
     
  18. captainsolo

    captainsolo Forum Resident

    Location:
    Murfreesboro, TN
    I thought the Shout set would be the A&E discs but it seems to have the UK Network extras and the larger number of discs from the Network releases so I was hoping it had had a proper NTSC conversion.

    If I find one cheap enough ever I'll try it but paying over $150 for a DVD set of a TV release is nuts.
     
    joannenugent likes this.
  19. smilin ed

    smilin ed Senior Member

    Location:
    Durham
    He was (and always will be) the cool sophisticate!
     
    Big Pasi likes this.
  20. realkilroy

    realkilroy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Oslo, Norway
    If you track prices for Avengers long enough, you can catch a pretty good deal. I bought season 4 on Amazon.uk for 20 GBP a couple of years ago. Seasons 5&6 on Amazon.fr for 30 Euro, which is a bit more expensive, but still is a reasonable price. I don't know how much is shipping price to the US, but I usually choose the cheapest (and the slowest) and it works just fine. Too bad the price tracker on blu-ray. com doesn't work anymore. But I heard there are 3rd party solutions.
     
  21. JAuz

    JAuz Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    US
    I paid about £30 shipped to the US for The Persuaders from Amazon UK. That's for 5 Blu-rays, 3 DVDs and a 150-page book jam packed with info and photos by Andrew Pixley. Now that's not cheap, but there's a lot of content there. Plus it's just the one season and your done for that show.

    The only hiccup is that the discs are region B/2. That may or may not be a problem, but those that decide to order it should be aware.
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.

Share This Page

molar-endocrine